Welcome to Avebury, Wiltshire, England
I was going through my pictures of England this afternoon and was struck by how much I saw during my eight day visit. I had the best guide in my friend, Sybil, who lives in Wiltshire and her friends, Mary, Val and Peter. No one could have had better companions. It's unlikely I could have seen more -- or had a better time -- traveling in any other manner. There are probably another ten blog posts to share, and I will do more posts in the future. But for my last post of July we're going to beautiful Avebury Manor.
One of the most popular sites in England is Stonehenge. But Avebury, which is located about an hour away is equally fascinating. It is the largest Neolithic stone circle in the world, and a fascinating place to visit. I visited Stonehenge four years ago. It was a sea of tour buses and people snapping selfies. This was not the case at Avebury. My friend, Val, and I shared the site with maybe a half dozen other visitors. It was an extraordinary experience.
One of the circles of stones at Avebury Henge.
It's believed that rituals or ceremonies were held here at least five thousand years ago.
The garden at Avebury Manor
Avebury Manor House is a sixteenth century manor house located next to the Henge. Unlike most of the house that visitors can tour, everything in Avebury Manor can be touched. Yes, they are reproductions, but it was so much fun to feel the wool on the "redcoat" and pick up the china. The house was featured in a BBC series, The Manor Reborn in 2011.
Church of St. James, Avebury
I'm a fan of sacred architecture and the Church of Saint James, Avebury was one of my favorite sites on this trip. The Church is approximately 1,000 years old and dates to the Saxon period.
I began July leaving for England and now I'm ending July with memories of this wonderful trip. August holds no long distance travel plans, but I'm anticipating a trip or two to New England next month. What are your August plans?
As ever, thanks for visiting and wishes for a sweet August!